Agencies
Galle
Partnerships were the name of the game as New Zealand strung together several of significance to come within 50 runs of Sri Lanka’s first-innings total of 305 at stumps on day two on Thursday, reports ESPNCricinfo.com.
There were breezy fifties from Tom Latham and Kane Williamson, and Rachin Ravindra also put forward an aggressive cameo. By the time an extended final session ended 15 minutes early due to bad light, there were more names on that list, as Daryl Mitchell and Tom Blundell had put together an unbeaten stand of 59 off 105. Theirs was the fourth 50-plus stand of the innings on a day that belonged almost in totality to the visitors.
All this happened despite a rain-curtailed morning session during which only 15 minutes of play were possible. But that was all it took for New Zealand to pick up the remaining three Sri Lanka wickets.
Sri Lanka’s best moments of the day were just that - moments - as their bowlers struggled to put together any periods of concerted pressure.
Despite the surface offering turn, none of the four spinners used by the hosts were able to find consistent lines and lengths - either due to the strong breeze across the stadium or the New Zealand batters’ proactiveness in using their feet as well as a variety of sweeps.
The hosts were also unable to build on any of the wickets to fall, with each new batter settling in quickly. Only a burst from Dhananjaya de Silva, when he dismissed Williamson and Ravindra in the space of two overs, offered a glimmer of Sri Lankan dominance, but that hope was snuffed out quickly by Mitchell and Blundell.
The rest of the spinners’ figures told a story. Prabath Jayasuriya toiled for 31 overs for figures of 99 for 1, easily his worst in Galle thus far, while Ramesh Mendis’ 17 overs went for 69 and brought a solitary scalp. Kamindu Mendis was used only for one over that went for eight.
Earlier in the day, it was Latham and Williamson who proved to be Sri Lanka’s tormentors. Latham, in particular, provided the blueprint during his 111-ball 70, both with his footwork and, more potently, prolific use of the sweep and reverse sweep.
While Devon Conway never really looked anywhere close to his flowing best, labouring his way to 17 off 59 deliveries, Latham was more than making up for it at the other end.
Scores: New Zealand 255 for 4 (Latham 70, Williamson 55, Dhananjaya 2-31) trail Sri Lanka 305 (Kamindu 114, Kusal 50, O’Rourke 5-55) by 50 runs.
